Monthly Archives: April 2016

Spring means rain, and driving in the rain is hard enough, when visibility is low and everyone is somehow a worse driver than usual, without the reality of hydroplaning. But knowing what to do when you hydroplane turns a scary situation into something manageable, so follow these quick tips and you’ll have control back in no time.

First of all, don’t brake! Braking will just make you skid more. You want your wheels to continue turning so that they can regain traction.

The best way to get control back depends on what drivetrain you have. For front-wheel drive owners, pull into a lane with open space in front of you if possible and then slowly accelerate until your wheels are back on the ground.

Rear-wheel drive (only without traction control and ABS brakes) is more what you’d expect—since you don’t have control over your front wheels, you need to decelerate by taking your foot off the gas, not stepping on the brake, and steer into an open lane like you would with front-wheel drive.

Remember, don’t use cruise control in the rain! You need to be able to decelerate at will without braking!

The Mazda MX-5 was the only vehicle to win two awards in the 2016 World Car Awards: It was named the World Car of the Year as well as the World Car Design of the Year. The World Car Awards were established in 2004 by a group of journalists, with the World Design Award being established two years later.

This year, the awards were determined by a 73 journalists from 23 different countries, who narrowed finalists for the World Car of the Year down to the MX-5, the Audi A4, and the Mercedes-Benz GLC. The panel announced the MX-5 was the winner on March 24 at the New York International Auto Show.

The MX-5’s other win, the World Car Design of the Year, marks it as the first Japanese car to win the award in the award’s 10 years of existence. The World Car Awards established this award to recognize innovation in automotive design. Mazda’s General Manager of Design Ikuo Maeda said the award is “proof that our designs can connect with people all over the world.”